Apparatus for heating and evaporating liquids.



0. K. ZWINGENBERGER.

APPARATUS FOR HEATING AND EVAPORATING LIQUIDS.

APPLICATION FILED DIE/0.6. 1912.

1,156,338. Patented oet. 12, 1915.

2 SHEETS-SHEET I.

IIII EHI| I f A TTORNE Y.

O. K. ZWINGENBERGER. APPARATUS FOR HEATING AND EvAPoRATlNG Lloums.

APPLICATION FILED DC. 6, |912;

Patented Oct. 12, 1915.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

/NVENTo/e.

,Q0 LLL 54 A TTORNE Y.

UNITEDI STATES 'PATENT oEEicE.

OTTO K. ZWvINGrENBERGrER, OF PERTH AMBOY, NEW JERSEY, ASSIGNOR T0 THE ROESSLER &. HASSLACHER CHEMICAL CO., 0F NEW YORK, N. Y.,A CORPORATION 0F NEW YonK.

APPARATS FOR HEATING AND EVAPORATNG LIQUIDS.

Y specification of Letters Patent.

Patented-oet. 12, 1915,

Original application led November 25, 1911, Serial No. 662,276. Divided and this application led December c, 1912. seria11vo.735,204.

To 'all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, OTTO BERGER, a subject of the Emperor of Germany, and a resident of Perth Amboy, in the county of Middlesex and State of New Jersey, have invented certain new and useful Improvementsin Apparatus forHeating and Evaporating Liquids, -of which the gard to the application .ofrsteani for this.

purpose as inthe action of the chemicals on the material of the evaporation appara tus. These latter difficulties, as well as the construction of suitable vacuum evaporating apparatus, ivhich also aided in overcoming them, were easily solved in a relatively short time.

The useof gas engines las a. source ofy power, however, gives to the question of lutilizing the waste heat of this modern machinery quite another aspect, as we have here tivo different sources of waste heat. Large units of such engines are fed with s0- l called producer gas,. which is generated in producers close to the engine station. These producer gases represent one source of waste heat as they must be cooled before use in the engine, the other source being the hot gas produced by the explosions in the cylinder of the engine..

Apparatus foi' the systematic utilization of the sensible heat of such producer gas, of the explosion gases of gas engines, of coke oven-gas and the like gases for heating and evaporating liquids is the purposeof this invention.

The term liquids as used herein is intended to cover broadly any aqueous solution containing a chemical compound or av mixture of such compounds'. The utiliza- K. ZWINGEN- tion of the heat from hot producer gases for the purpose of evaporating such liquids meets With many difficulties having their chief source in the kgreat difference between the temperature of the applied gases `and the boilingpoint of the liquids to be evaporated. For example, liquids, carrying'dissolved salts, alkalis or other-chemicals of usually solid consistency,cannot be evaporated With the expected good results when working according to the lusual methods recommended by-success in other lines. Certain phenomena occur due to the high tein-y perature of the gases and to the nature .of

.the chemicals dissolved in the liquids, .the

infiuence of which lowers the result inv a very undesirable Way. Based on some invention of Hans Foersterling for Which applications for United States Letters Patent are pending under Serial Nos. 366,724, 370,699 and 523,925, I ha-vefound that heatinge. and eiapoiating liquids 1 by Athe heat from hot producer gases for instance, can

be successfully carried out byworking in a certain Way and maintaining certain conditions Which Will prevent the occurrence of thesephenomena. This purpose can besuccessfully attained by'distributing the hot producer gases, or other gases, over a plurality of primary evaporation.vesselsy in such a way that the liquidin,questionivill never reach the boiling point, but may always be kept, on the average, about 5o centigrade below the `boiling point, thus reducing rthe efl fect of the heat of the gases to such an eX- tent that later .on the evaporating of liquids plain pans Without any regulation of the distribution of gas in the sense of my invention and consequently there has beenno'control ofthe temperature in the sense of my iiivention to kee-ptlie liquid constantly somewhat below the boiling point. Y

I Will now describe my invention in connection with an apparatus illustrating'one means of practising the same and for a full and clear understanding thereof, reference hereinafter and which is clearly illustrated is made to the accompanying drawings in in the drawings. There may be any suitable which* v e number of main steam boilers connected Figure l isa front elevation, partly in seceither in series, in parallel or series parallel,

tion and partly broken away, of a 'portion of but I have here shown two boilers connected '70 said apparatus, and Fig. 2 isa -plan View, yin series as I believesucli an arrangement to partly r'broken away, of the complete appa-iy befthe most eiiicient. Each of the boilers ratus. F1, F2, is preferably connected with a s eries Similar letters and'numerals oiqzreference of yauxiliary boilers, here shown as consistindicate similar parts throughout-the seving of two such auxiliary boilers in each 75 eral views. Xseries, `O2 vand O2 and P1 and P2 respec- The hot producer gases, for example, comtively.. ing from a producer (not shown) througha-v The lauxiliary boilers in their opei'ation main feed pipe A are conducted through preferably depend on the steam which is pipe A1 controlled by a suitable ralve E Agenerated in the boilers F1 and F2 bythe 80 into a primary evaporation vessel C Where khot gas passing through the latter, the auxthey enter a flue C3, w. hence they are con-A iliary boilers being preferably operated on ducted through a system of parallel tubes the same principle as theA vacuum evapora- B arranged as in a horizontal tubular boiler*; 4 tion apparatus used in the lvarious' yindusthe hot producer gases entering at the bottries, as for instance, in' the manufacture 85 tom and being caused to pass throughthe` yof sugar and soda `wherein considerable lrespective vlayers of tubes Bv. by means of volumes of, liquids ,are evaporated. In the baffle-plates B1 arranged lin the flues Cjwapparatus shown, the steam generatedfin a The gases leave the-tubes B near-the top ,ofaboiler Fl serves to heat boiler O1 Aand the vessel C andenter pn'iain collectoi;pipe D. steam generated in boiler )1 :serves to heat 90 Any suitable number-of vessels 1-may be f;.ib o ile r 02, ,The boilers-Pland P2 are heated arranged in parallel Pand DlOXded Witli'thembv the steam from the boiler F2 ina corre-v connection described; in Fig'.v 2, for' example, ,spondinginanner. l2ipe/O3` conducts the I have shown four such vessels. steam from boiler F 1to ,near the bottoinol By admitting the hot-pioducer gases -intov "boiler O1. faiidqpjipe, 0,, conducts i the steam 95 the tubesB at the bottoinof vessel Gaither; lfrom boiler-Ohio near the bottom of boiler liquid in the vessel C surroundingthetubes.- 02,21. `Pipes P3 and P .perforrn similar fun@v B is so heated that itk undergoes-iasteadygc'irfj:tions to pipes O? and Oi. f1 A; special feature culation from the bottom kto- ;tl ie top of the of the operation s'thatiineaiis are provided -vessel, as the liquid in the lower part;fis-subH Wlie'ifeby ,tl ie;,.l-iquid di iring Ithe evaporation 100 jected to a'greateixheatythan thatv in thefiil process ispermitted to travel. i na direction, per part of the `vessel 1and hence ,becominggopposite to :that o tftlieigasi,-`

lighter, rises and causes avcontinuouscircu f Windicaltes anwalt-liquor storagetank lation Which makes for a uniformtempera- --'amounted on-an@eleyatiomabovethefrestof 40 ture ol the liquid in said vesseh, l f ftheapparatus and` provided with; suitable.; 1015 In order to control; the entrancezof the liOtz'` gases into any ofthefyessels (1,;Iliiwef,pra` vided each o f t lieffpifp'esf.A2 v-ithy 21` asla; Which 'as hereinbefore d; the seriesoffboilers ,0,23 O1; and. 'F2351 any suitable-constructie nder general conditions-@this course guar-.+110

All 0fl the 'mfniiiis connection.. f fl'flt'es the; vbes'txfutlizatian "ot-the wheat and valves which are 'su j ted` i v Then they-liquid fromyboilerl2= has reafchedf". from the hot gases are;v prefi 1 tha-proper concentration'gorwhenever?itgmay,t sidewyith sii'itable heat insulating inaterialj` be*fotherwise;desirabler'thefliquid istaiis-gi,

-fdjisliargeg giconnections; G1, and G5; `Grl dis-.g-

ging into .the-seriesyfof boilersP-2 f "t l and, Gidiscliargiag; ltlircugli .pipa

(not shown). The-loweiyipart tifa/ahrc; fer-red f froin boiler E2=to:;boiler'-F1.through 115,l

'rom wliichlfsub-f H1 iPlPei K- i. The hot regases afterlirpassing connection pipes-Gf ileadftoany fof-itlieaw'essi..

50 through tubes B and1vesselj-zGwertergthe main sels@ so that. the{preheated-'mad -fconcentratw plpe .Dftllrgugh pipeilypip. Dffactingas a ed iauids may be:distiaibiitedeintothe vessels e s e.y"eifa1vvv .vessels .Q iegfG'xi-sf--in Atlirectcannection Witln-tlie salt-liquor storage tanlr Us thatJ-eiltlier'ff' From: boiler llt-'M1203- situation may require. Though the conduction of liquids in the course prescribed above.

is generally preferred, it is to be understood that in the conduction of the liquid many variations may take place and that it may. 'also be arranged that liquids ot' different kinds may be treated siniultaiieouslyiin the various parts of the apparatus.

The passage of the gases through the tiibiivlar boilers F1, F2 may be etl'ected inthe usualJ way, the gases entering the boilers in` the upper part of the flues and leaving at the bottom, but as the producer gases have already transferred a considerable part of tively, terminating somewhat below the upper Wall of the flue, thus dividing the Hue Space Ainto two substantially vequal compartments and causing the hot gases to enter the boiler F] Vnear thebottom through pipe K1,

pass over partition H1, leave boiler -F1 through pipe 1K2 and pass in thesa'me zigzag wray through boiler F2 and thence through the other: main steam boilerswhich may be arrangedin the series. until the gases are so cooled down that the lieattheyare'vthen carrying represents an item not deserving further considei'ation.

Primary evaporation vessels constructed to run as vacuum boilers, though it has been found advantageous to provide the vessels C with suitable hoods to lead off the water vapor and to construct the hoods so that the exit thereto may be closed by a 'suitable damper as shown in Fig. 1, and also to provide means whereby air may be per# mitted to enter the vessels Cthrougli a series of ililets Lin such manner as to strike theL surface of the liquid and to thus increase the vaporization 1n a very favorable manner. The air highly saturated with water vapor passes through the exit M into a pipe N and f may then be blown by suitable means v(not shown) into the combustion zone of the gas producer to supply the air foi-'the combustion and the Water for the generation of hydrogen and carbon monoxid.

By distributing the hot gases over a plu-` rality'of vessels C 'Iam able to bring as attain the temperature at which I wish to i keep the liquid aiid,as hereinabove pointed out` by admitting the hot gases to the tubes B at the lowest part of the vessels C, I create a steady circulation of the liquid so that `a C may be f uniform temperature'is caused to prevailin the vessels C. It is readily'V seen that by tliisniethod no conditions for steam generating arise around the tubes B and, although it seems contraiv to the purpose of evaporating liquids. this is one ofthe points lupon which the success of the work depends. If

hot gases are admitted to the tubes B in such quantities that steam generation sets in, the chemicals dissolved in the liquid Would take part in vthe process by covering the tubes with an ever increasing coat of solid material, an effect which is explained by the Leidenfrost phenomenon, and thus vaporizationwvill become impossible in a very short time and great inconvenience be caused b v the delay and labor entailed by the injudicious exposure of the liquids to the-hot producer gases, explosion gases, coke-oven gases or other gases which might be utilized. As b v my invention I cause a steady circulation and avoid the generation of steam around the tubes B, the Leidenfrost phenomenon cannot occur and all the inconveniences resulting from its influence are entirely avoided. It is clear that as a steady circulation is going on in the vessel C, the

liquid on top is very nearly as hot as that at the bottom. Inmy apparatus the vaporization occurs only at the surface 0f the liquid.

Crystals may separate from the rliquid when the latter becomes. saturated in the course of operation. but these' crystals are not liaifiiifiil in their effect beca use they are loose and settle as sediment at the bottom of Athe vessels. whence they may be removed through outlets C1.

Valves C2 permit liqui'ds to be drawn from vessels C.' Should the crystals occurin too great masses the liquid maybe stirred in any of the Well known ways.

By dividing the flues of boilers F1 and F2 into two compartments by a partition, the gases .are caused to travel in a path which is twice as longas the path they would travel I if admitted to the flues of. each boiler at the 'highest point and drawn oft' at the bottom to enter the flues of the next boiler `again at the highest point. By this arrangement the number of the required boilers is greatly reduced, for by this system the sensible heat of the lgases is transferredA to the liquid in a most -effectivefway, as on account of the buoyancy, the hotgases tend to `remain at the higher points around `the top of the' partition and move'down graduallyas they arecooled.

One of theadvantagesin practising my invention consists in theuniformvaporization 1n vessels C exclusively from the sur- 4face of the liquid. Though the liquid is not'v keptat lthe boiling point and'tliough the effect may not be quite as great/asf it might be ifthe; liquid were kept boiliifg permanently,.all the troubles from incrustations on curb down the unfavorable temperature of the hot gases in much the same way that a rheostat controls an electric current, the gases being controllable to such a degree that the amount of heat they carry inpassing through vessels C is such as to allow the concentration of the liquids in boilers F1,

F2 to be managed in about the same Way as is done with steam, with or -without the employment of vacuum. The final concentration of Aliquids may take place in vessels C, in boilers F1 or in any other convenient manner.

It is of course understood that various changes in the form, proportions and arrangements of parts and in the minor de tails, yof construction may be resorted to without departing from the principle or sacrificing any of the advantages of the invention as described inthe specification and de fined in the appended claims. V

Having described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is: 5 i

l. In an" apparatus for heating and evaporating liquids by hot gases coming directly from industrial sourcesI as specified, the combination of a main gas pipe, a plurality of primary evaporation vessels, connection pipes between said vessels and the main pipe, means for regulating the quantity of gas flowing through said connection pipes, a main gas collector, connection pipes between the 'primary evaporation vessels and theY main gas collector, aboiler system` and a connection between said main and said boiler system. t

2.- In an'apparatus for heating and evaporating liquidsby hot gases coming directly from industrial sources as specified, the combination of a main gas pipe,k a system of primary evaporation vessels, connection pipes'betweenv said vessels and the main pipe, means forvregulating-the flowof gas through said connection pipes, a mainy gas collector, connection pipes between the primary evaporation vessels and the main gas collector, a mainboiler system, a connection between said main gas collector and said boiler system and an auxiliary boiler system in connection with said main boiler system. Y y I 3. In an apparatus for 'heating and evaporating liquids by hot gases coming directly from industrial sources as specified, the com.-

bination of a main gas pipe,fa system of pri-v mary evaporation vessels, connection pipes between said vessels and the main pipe,

gas collector valves in said connection pipes, means controlling the'operation of said valves to regulate the flow of gas through said connection pipes, a maingas collector, connection pipes between the primary evaporation vessels and the main gas collector, a boiler system and a connection between said main gas collector and said boiler system.

In an apparatus for heating and evaporating liquids by hot gases coming directly from industrial sources as specified, the combination of a main gas pipe, a system of primary evaporation vessels, connection pipes between said vessels and the main pipe, means for regulating the flow of gasesl 8O through said connectionpipes, a main gas collector, connection pipes between the primary evaporation vessels and theimain gi s collector, a boiler system and a connection between said main gas collector and said boiler system.

5. In an apparatus for heating and evaporating liquids by hot gases coming directly from industrial sources as specified, the combination of a main gas pipe, a plurality of primary evaporation vessels, connection pipes between said vessels and the main pipe, means for regulating the quantity of gas flowing through said connection pipes, suitable passageways for the gases in each of the primary evaporation vessels, amain gas collector, connection pipes between the primary evaporation'vessels and the main gas collector, a system of boilers and a connection between said main gas collector and said 100 boiler system.

l6. In an apparatus for heating and evaporating liquids by hot gases coming directly from industrial sources as specified, the combination of a main gas pipe, a system of 105 primary evaporation vessels, l connection pipes between said vessels and the main pipe, meansV for regulating the quantity of gas flowing through said connection pipes, a

main gas collector, connection pipes between from industrial sources as specified, thecombination of a main gas pipe, a system of primary -evaporation vessels, connect1on' pipes between said vessels and the mainy ipe, Imeans for regulating the quantity o gas flowing .through said connection pipes, a main gas collector, connection pipes between the primary evaporation vessels and the main gas collector, a system of boilers, a connection between said main gas collector and said boiler system, and means for con- 13 ducting the liquids to be evaporated through said boilers to said e 'aporating vessels 1n a course opposite to that of the gas.

S. ln an apparatusl for heating and evaporating liquids by hot gases coming directly from industrial sources as specifi-ed, tbe com- -bin-ation of a main gas pipe, a plurality of primary evaporation vessels, connection 'pipes between said vessels and the main pipe.- means for regulating the quantity of gas flowing through said connection pipes, a main gas collector, connection pipes between the primary evaporation vessels and the main gas collector. a system of main boilers. a connection between the main gas collector and said system of main boilers, a system of vacuum boilers adjacent said main boilers and means for conductingv steam from the main boilers to said vacuum boilers.

9. in an apparatus for heating and evapo rating liquids by not gases coming directly from industrial sources as speciiied, the combination of a main gas pipe, a plurality of primary evaporation vessels, connection pipes between said vessels and the main pipe,v

ineans for regulating the quantity of gas owing through said connection pipes, a main gas collector, connection pipes between the primary evaporation vessels andthe main gas collector, a system of main tubular boilers, Aa connection from said main gas collector to one of said main tubular boilers, a system or" vacuum boilers adjacent each of said main tubular boilers and means vfor conducting liquidv from the vacuum boilers to said main boilers.

10. in an apparatus :for heating and evaporating liquids by hot gases coming directly from industrial sources as specified, the combination of a main gas pipe, a system of primary evaporation vessels, connection pipes between said vessels and main pipe, means` for regulating the quantity of gas iowing through said connection pipes, a main gas collector, connection pipes between said primary evaporation vessels and the main gas collector, a system -of main boilers, a connec#E tion between said gas collector and one of `said main boilers, a. system of auxiliary boilmain gas collector', connection pipes between Y said primary evaporation vessels and the main gas collector, a system of main boilers, a connection between said gas collector and one of said main boilers, a systeml ot' auxiliary boilers adjacent each of said main boilers, means for conducting steam from said main boilers to said auxiliary boilers, and from said main boilers to said primary .evaporation vessels, the course of said liquid being in a direction opposite to that of the hot gases and steam.

In testimonywvhereof have signed this specification in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

OTTO K. ZNKNGENBERGER.

Witnesses:

MARIAN E. SULLIVAN,

HERBERT GREERs. 

